2009 GMC Sierra 2500 HD - The Monster Inside

Does This Look Like A 1,200HP GMC?

It has been said that everything is bigger in Texas, and that adage certainly holds true for Kevin Love's '09 GMC Sierra 2500 HD. From the outside, the truck doesn't look like much, but once Kevin pops the hood, it's a completely different story. Where a stock 365hp Duramax once resided, now lies a 1,200hp, twin-turbo monster.

While the truck was lifted with larger wheels and tires, exterior modifications have been kept to a minimum. The engine is the real story, and what a story it is. The entire 6.6L LMM was built from the ground up, with 15:1 compression pistons from PPE, main studs from ARP, connecting rods from Carrillo, and a mild camshaft from SoCal Diesel. To prevent any sort of head gasket issues, a set of ARP 625 head studs was used to clamp the SoCal Diesel Stage 2 heads firmly to the block. With a stout foundation, Kevin's attention was then turned to making power via lots of fuel and air.

On the fuel side of the coin, a second CP3 injection pump was used in conjunction with a PPE Dual Fueler kit that splits the injection load between the two pumps in order to keep rail pressure up. The Dual Fueler was needed because the truck has a set of PPE injectors that flow 100 percent more than stock, which in conjunction with PPE's Hot+2 E.T. Race Programmer, provides the truck with an enormous amount of fuel.

There was no way the stock turbo was going to keep up on the airflow side, so a wild twin-turbo kit from PPE was fitted to the engine. The smaller of the two turbos, a Garrett GT4202, was positioned in the stock location, while the larger turbo, a Garrett GT55, was placed over the passenger-side fenderwell, due to its immense size and weight. Together, the two turbos can produce up to 100 psi, although they are wastegated to 60 psi as a starting point using a Tial 44mm wastegate.

Since a similar engine recently rocked a chassis dyno to the tune of 970 hp, we'd say that 900 to 1,000 hp at the wheels (or about 1,200 at the crank) is a good estimate for Kevin's engine. To handle that amount of power, a PPE Stage V Allison transmission was installed, along with a custom PPE torque converter. The rest of the truck was left surprisingly stock for the amount of power it can produce.

We're not sure what the future holds for this wild ride from Texas, but whether it's drag racing, sled pulling, or just hanging out at truck shows, we're positive it will draw a crowd once its monster engine is unleashed.